Let's Talk About "Quiet Quitting"
Whether you're a business leader navigating the ever-changing professional space or a Gen Z employee just starting their career, "Quiet Quitting" has been everywhere. What began as a trend on TikTok made its way to Twitter, YouTube, the web, TV, Print, and of course, your favorite newsletters (I see you, Morning Brew!)
During my commute this morning, I read an article on Business Insider about quiet quitting, and what started as a simple tweet, turned into a Twitter Thread. And that Twitter thread has now turned into a LinkedIn article.
I love this professional and cultural trend because it means something different to each individual and generation. Ask a Gen Z professional, and they say quiet quitting is a form of self-care that helps them prevent burnout, as it's been nearly 3 years since the ways of working were forever changed with the start of a global pandemic.
Ask a millennial, and many like me say that's it all about work-life balance. In that, we recognize that the positive benefit on my career by working 5+ extra hours a week is much smaller than the negative impact on my personal life and mental and physical health in doing so.
Talk to an older Gen X or Baby Boomer, and they'll say that quiet quitters are clueless, lazy, and won't succeed in high-performing companies. Just ask entrepreneur and TV personality Kevin O'Leary for his thoughts on quiet quitting.
While I recommend reading the Business Insider article in-depth, I wanted to share two meaningful quotes and my thoughts on the topic. Both are from Dr. Liz Gross, founder, and CEO of Campus Sonar, a higher education consultancy.
"I don't think quiet quitting would be a phrase or something that we're talking about if we didn't have a widespread problem with corporate cultures of overwork, underappreciation." - Dr. Gross
This, to me, is the most significant point around Quiet Quitting. Employees wouldn't look to reclaim their time if they didn't feel they needed to in the first place. You don't have to look for long on LinkedIn before you see a post about someone with either a negative or toxic work-life balance, regardless of industry or size. But will business leaders dig deeper into why #QuietQuitting is everywhere they look?
And another insight from this "outsider" perspective:
"There is a large portion of the workforce that went above and beyond, over the course of time, but particularly during the pandemic, and received absolutely no reward for that — and maybe actually lost something in the process," Gross said. "So if there is no incentive to exceed expectations, you should never expect people to go above and beyond."
Between the #GreatResignation and Quiet Quitting, I've personally seen organizations spend at least 2-3x in costs replacing employees instead of compensating them adequately. The emotional impact of a team member leaving and the impact of those who pick up the slack is hard to quantify.
Now Let Me Apply A Personal Lens To Quiet Quitting
Thinking about my personal experiences, I'll never forget the day I had 11 meetings scheduled while working as a middle manager at an advertising agency. I already knew it was a lot, but it was reaffirmed shortly after. My Dad, a senior HR executive for one of the largest companies at the time, had reached out as he always does and mentioned he only had two meetings.
I'm happy my Dad has a better work-life balance as a senior leader; he's earned it. But this anecdotal evidence from my personal life ties directly back to what Dr. Liz Gross said, entire industries and organizations have a culture of overwork.
I believe in putting in the work, learning skills, and building the mental fortitude for when the going gets tough. But the employer and employee relationship is a two-way street, and the organizations that recognize and lean into that fact retain the best employees and spend less time and money on rehiring and training.
And as leaders, we owe our teams at the very least, setting realistic expectations and communicating those clearly. It's then up to us as employees to decide if that's a good fit for us as professionals. I once worked on a nightlife brand, and due to a new project we sold in, would require someone from our social media team to be online late-night Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, engaging with our target audience.
That responsibility landed on my plate, and I directly asked my manager at the time, "Is the expectation for me to work a full day Thursday, and then either stay awake until the early morning or nap for two hours. And then do the same thing over again on Friday?" The response, as you can imagine was not straightforward and neither of us are there to this day.
How have your colleagues, your teams, and leaders responded to the trend of Quiet Quitting? Do you see similar things to what I mentioned above? Am I completely off?
Let me know!
